I'm back to answer the second part of your question: What were the circumstances of my departure?
Before I begin, I want to apologize for the length of these posts. So far, these aren't questions with simple or concise answers. I'm trying to give a full picture because I know that you guys have been trying to connect the dots, but I recognize it has made a lot of these posts long. Unfortunately, this post may end up being my longest because it is the part of my journey that people have the most questions about. It is also the part of my journey that has been most misrepresented. In order to avoid a lot of follow-up questions, I'm going to be proactive and address a lot here so that we can all put this particular thing to rest. Then we'll be able to move past it and get to the remaining questions y'all have on other topics. If long, sordid tales are not your thing, please just scroll past this one. If they are, buckle in.
So, as we all know, Dustin finally left The Dis. His seat was vacant, and Pete was beside himself over the loss of Dustin. The emotional roller coaster Pete was on was a really rough ride for the team in many ways. Pete kept Dustin's seat open and wouldn't fill it for what seemed an eternity. It felt like he was holding out hope that he would be able to lure Dustin back somehow.
I didn't really know what was going on with Pete. Only the guys were a part of Pete's innermost circle, so the women often dealt with the dramatic effects of Pete's personal soap opera without much context (except for Teresa...she knows where most of the bodies are buried. lol). This was one of those times. Pete seemed to be getting more irritable, but I didn't really know why. He was reorganizing things with the shows, and he felt The Trip needed a lot of changes. Those changes all but hog-tied The Trip. We were told that we would no longer be funded for outings in Orlando and had to restrict ourselves to round-table discussions about the theme parks. Since there was already a show about Disney and a show about Universal, this made The Trip redundant. We were told it had to be this way because the guys would now be too busy to spend any time creating the packages (video content akin to vlogs) that we incorporated into the show. We were also told it was not an option for the women (myself, Teresa, and Jackie) to create the packages ourselves because we weren't capable of meeting the quality standard that The Dis required. Craig, Teresa, and I didn't see the point in continuing and thought the show should just be dropped. We would have been content to let it go and focus our efforts on the shows Pete wasn't crippling. Teresa was stretched thin anyway due to her responsibilities at The Welcome Center. She regretted that she didn't have time for her family, and I wasn't so wrapped up in The Trip that I couldn't call it quits. In truth, the show was often an awkward experience for me even though I tried to make the best of it. We collectively felt it wasn't a tremendous loss if we were going to be working under these new restrictions.
One day before we started filming The Trip, Teresa gave me the heads up that Pete would probably pick a fight with me after the show because somehow he heard we were unhappy with the changes he was making. She also warned me that if I was honest, she would leave me holding the bag because she was not about to tell him her true feelings and suffer the consequences. I told her I understood. We filmed the show, wrapped, and just as she said, Pete came in and went straight for me. He very aggressively confronted me. I matter-of-factly laid out the points I mentioned above and said that maybe we should consider just dropping the show. To protect Craig, I did not mention any of his grumbling about Pete's decisions. And when it came to Teresa, I was careful not to put words in her mouth. I expressed that her circumstances should be given consideration as if those were singularly my personal feelings. And I did it all in a straightforward manner.
Because he was looking for a fight to begin with, he purposefully escalated everything even though it wasn't necessary. I had remained calm and collected, but he started antagonizing me and screaming at me. I suspect he was trying to bait me so that I would react and his vicious behavior would be justified. I was boiling, but I wasn't going to give him what he was desperate for. I heard no words at that point. There was only his ugly face screaming. I remember glaring at him, basically daring him to keep going until he turned blue in the face. No matter what, I wasn't going to respond other than with this dead stare of pure hatred. He eventually went silent and tried to intimidate me by glaring back, but I wouldn't look away. We sat there with eyes locked until he eventually broke, got up, and left the room. Craig, Teresa, and Jackie looked at me in disbelief. It wasn't the first time I had been direct with Pete, but I hadn't stood my ground like that before.
Days later, he apologized. I think he didn't know what else to do with me since I had shown some gumption. I briefly found myself being treated favorably again, and there was the gift of a Disney Resort stay for me and the kids around this time.
Not long after this, Pete finally came around and began interviewing to fill Dustin's spot. Oliver was among the top individuals being considered by Pete. He is talented and a hard worker, but if you look at him, it isn't hard to figure out why he caught Pete's attention. They aren't look-alikes, but Oliver and Dustin share some common physical traits as well as skill sets. He had a lot going for him in this particular race. The only thing that would have hurt Oliver's chances of landing the job was that during his interview when he was asked who his favorite podcaster was, he responded, "It's definitely JeniLynn. She is just lovely. I've been following her since her days at Attractions, and she is the reason I found The Dis." Oliver and I still laugh about that to this day because he didn't realize how much of a mistake that was.
Luckily or unluckily (depending on how you want to frame it), Oliver still rose to the top for Pete. And--full disclosure--I was 100% behind this decision because I felt Oliver was the best choice regardless of Pete's not-so-subtle attraction to him. Oliver was hired. Dustin's seat was filled, and we all hoped that Pete would be able to move on so our lives could be a little less hellish. That didn't up being the case for me.
Company policy required the team to float expenses on our personal credit cards. When we paid for meals, plane tickets, or anything else our content required, we did it with our personal credit, collected the receipts, and eventually turned them in for reimbursement. But turning over our receipts was always a very uncomfortable event. Even though it was money we were owed, it always felt like you were coming to Pete with your hand out. Sometimes, I just ate expenses to avoid having to ask Pete for money because it was just so unpleasant, and I never recorded the amounts from my receipts because I didn't think I needed that information. Questioning a check amount would have provoked him, so I figured I was going to take what I was given even if it was incorrect. But to his credit (pun intended?), I don't think I ever had a check come up short. In fact, it was often the opposite.
It wasn't uncommon to float expenses on our cards for months to avoid approaching him, and it wasn't uncommon to wait additional months to be reimbursed after you turned over your receipts. For this reason, it also wasn't uncommon for Pete to generously pad our reimbursement checks. I think he liked this system because it made him feel magnanimous, and none of us complained when he did it.
On the next reimbursement cycle, my check was padded. I didn't question it. Initially, I didn't even notice it because I never looked at checks in front of Pete. I didn't want to risk him handing me a check and interpreting my immediate lookover as supervising his math. I also didn't give it a priority later on because I hadn't tracked how much I was owed anyway. At that time, I had more pressing matters at home that I was navigating.
I had recently uncovered one of my daughters was emotionally struggling and was self-harming. She had started purposely scratching her skin until it broke open. Her dad and I were trying to figure out how to help her, but, honestly, it was mostly me trying to figure out how to help her. Inflated check amounts just weren't at the forefront of my mind, especially since it wasn't an unusual practice.
I think when I finally drove to the bank to deposit the check, I looked at it to record the amount on the deposit card, had a brief thought about it being a lot more than I remembered, reconciling it as Pete being extra generous, and moving on to the next thing that needed my attention. A couple of days after it was deposited, I received a text from Pete saying that he hadn't intended to give me that much. My immediate response was essentially, "Ok. Well, that makes sense. I'll return the difference to you tomorrow. What is that amount?" In so many words, he accused me of trying to defraud him, banned me from team activities, and refused to tell me the amount he wanted back.
I wrote him an email to try and establish a line of communication. In it, I painfully and embarrassingly groveled. I was already working on leaving The Dis, but this was happening too soon. I had two very strong possibilities sitting outside for me, but my ducks had not been lined up yet, and I still had three kids to take care of--one with a new and serious issue. It was not the time to be thrown into sudden unemployment. I was terrified.
I walked into the studio the next day with a check for $1k and asked Ryno to make sure Pete received it. I didn't know if that was the amount he felt he was owed. I had to take a guess. But once I dropped it off, I texted Pete to tell him the money had been returned. You guys have the screenshots of those texts in a previous thread for verification.
He never cashed that check. Instead, he began telling the team I was a thief. The team knew I had not stolen from Pete. My history at The Dis didn't line up with that. Corey spent about a full week trying to intervene on my behalf. I know that Craig also spoke up for me when he was given the chance. It fell on deaf ears. Pete was hell-bent on getting rid of me. His reaction was really extreme. He was the one who had made the mistake, and my immediate response was, "No problem. How much do you need back?" The whole thing felt manufactured like it had been when he tried to bait me into that fight a month before.
The inevitable did happen. Corey realized Pete was immovable on this and I was going to be terminated. He twisted himself into knots with apologies and asked me to forgive him because Pete was forcing him to witness my termination. He walked me to Pete's living room. I was seated across from Pete. John was there, stoic and silent. And Corey mournfully took a chair. I was told I was being fired for stealing, but I was told that I would be given 6 months of severance pay and 3 months of medical insurance. When I asked if this was in writing as our parting agreement, Pete scoffed. Nothing would be put in writing, and then I understood that this "severance" was hush money and that its ability to be taken from me would be used to ensure I did exactly what Pete wanted for at least 6 more months.
There was nothing left to say. The meeting ended. Corey walked me to the door and began apologizing again. I stopped him and told him that I knew Pete wanted him there to intimidate me, but it had the opposite effect. Corey being there made me feel stronger because I knew he knew I was innocent. I let him know he helped me keep my dignity and a stiff upper lip during it all. We hugged, and then I walked out where I found Craig waiting for me by my car. All stiff upper lips went out the window. We both cried. He was worried, but I told him it was ok. Although he was unaware of the plans I had been working on, we'd had enough conversations that he knew I was going to leave eventually. I reminded him of that and said, "This is just pushing me out the door a little sooner than expected and might not be a bad thing." As I started to walk away from Craig, I do remember stopping and saying, "Mark my words: This is because he wants to bring Dustin back, and now that Oliver is here, he needs my salary to do it."
I got in my car to drive away, and I had the Disney Production Manager on the phone before I made it off of Pete's street. He could hear that I was shaken up pretty badly. I asked if he could take his lunch break because I really needed to talk to him. Thankfully, he sensed the urgency. We met for lunch where I explained everything that had happened. After I had verbally vomited it all up, he said, "This is actually great." I said, "What?" He said, "We've been struggling to find something for you this whole time because you needed a full-time position that would give you a salary. You don't need that anymore." I said, "Huh?" He said, "Pete just gave you 6 months of money for training as a freelancer at Broadcast Production. You can be set up as an Independent Contractor. I hadn't suggested it before because the work wouldn't be steady at first, especially since you are new. But now you don't have to worry about that part. Your finances will be set for 6 months. I'll use that time to make sure you learn everything you need to know. We could have this thing totally figured out before the 6 months are up. Maybe at the end, you still decide to go full-time with Inside the Magic. Maybe you don't. Let's take the next 6 months and see what happens." That did not sound bad to me.
Hours later, I was able to get ahold of Ricky Brigante. I told him that I knew we had set a deadline for January 2017 but that timeline might need to be accelerated. I explained there wasn't a crisis because of my plan to use my "severance" while I picked up jobs at Disney. It still gave me time to look into the legal issue and him time to look for funding. He was cool with everything. We agreed to pick back up again in about 6 months.
I went to sleep that night stressed and exhausted but not panicked. Pete thought he had sent me packing with my tail between my legs, but I relished the fact that he would inadvertently be the reason I got my foot in the door at Disney. And 6 months later, I got a huge kick out of announcing my start with Inside the Magic. I hear it was that day Pete's lawyer informed him that the non-compete he thought was in my contract wasn't actually there.
I agree with everything you said about Shaun Thompson. He was so great and well spoken. I loved his time when he was with the show, especially during the 7 in 7s that he was apart of, as well as the Beyond the Parks. I guess when he always said that he's very uncomfortable, he was VERY uncomfortable. I hope he's doing great.